| Bobby Bernard's Barbaric Ballsack | |
|---|---|
 Novanglian theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Bobby Bernard |
| Produced by | Lewis Gilbert |
| Screenplay | Charles Wood Bobby Bernard |
| Starring | Bobby Bernard Bob Hoskins Dirk Bogarde Susannah York Stanley Baker Sean Connery George Sanders |
| Music by | György Ligeti |
| Distributor | United Artists |
| Release date(s) | 13 July 1968 (Novanglia) |
| Running time | 103 minutes |
| Country | Novanglia |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $16 million |
| Box office | $89 million |
Bobby Bernard's Barbaric Ballsack is a 1968 Novanglian psychedelic live-action/animated black comedy film directed by comedian and actor Bobby Bernard, from a screenplay written by Bernard and Charles Wood. It is very loosely based on several novels and short stories, most notably C.S. Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia and Madeleine L'Engle's A Wrinkle in Time, but maintains its own independent style, and is sometimes erroneously considered an epic film. The film stars Bernard in his first major film debut as a fictionalized version of himself, Bob Hoskins, Dirk Bogarde, Susannah York, Stanley Baker, Sean Connery, and George Sanders. It is set in the late 1960s in a dystopian world where the Great Muqaddian War is fought over the fate of the entire known universe, leading its protagonists to take refuge in a fantasy world accessible through a cabinet. The film's title refers to the Novanglian slang term "barbaric ballsack", which is often used as a metaphor for a bad event.
The film's production harkens back to 1962 when Bobby Bernard was not a widely popular figure in Novanglian film industry. It was conceptualized as a drama film focusing on the exploits of the higher classes during times of war, but gradually was extended to inherit elements of fantasy and animation. Despite initial financial struggles, Bernard was able to sign a contract with United Artists which gave him creative rights over the project. He eventually assembled a star-based cast comprising of Dirk Bogarde, Susannah York, and Sean Connery. While funding for the project proved difficult due to a tense economic situation, the film exceeded its expectations and was able to attain $16 million in production. The film was notably animated by Gerald Scarfe, who later went on to become a frequent collaborator of Bernard's.
Bobby Bernard's Barbaric Ballsack was released on 13 July 1968 after premiering at the Homestead Film House in Hawkinsville a day earlier. It initially received mixed to scathing reviews in the press due to its frequent vulgarity, title, and satirical depictions of several world leaders, including incumbent Prime Minister George McGovern. Cited as a "cultural phenomenon of the late 1960s", the film is said to have brought profanities to a much younger audience. Despite polarizing reviews from critics of the time, the film grossed $89 million worldwide, eventually becoming the highest-grossing film of 1968, bringing Novanglian cinema to an international audience.
Widely considered one of the best comedy films ever made, Bobby Bernard's Barbaric Ballsack was critically re-examined in the 1980s to positive reviews; it has been cited by Roger Ebert as "the take which shattered both the paranoia and anger that dominated the Cold War", and was chosen for preservation in the United States National Film Registry by the Library of Congress as "culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant".
Plot[]
Bobby Bernard is a fanatical but mild-tempered animator living in New Chester, Novanglia with his increasingly distant love interest, Kathy (played by Susannah York). He is frequently visited by his pessimistic mailman John Steady, whom he cultivates a friendship with despite Steady's views that the world will end as a result of the "bad war". Bernard addresses the audience abruptly by giving a lecture on just how "rudimentary" the world is, and why he believes that "surreal optimism" will eventually save it from the conflict that Steady speaks of. Despite his fairly dismissive views towards the apathy of society, Bernard is frequently belittled at his office by his overbearing boss, Joe Chicken, whom Bernard loathes deeply. In an attempt to reconcile his failing relationship with Kathy, he takes her to his office, only to be humiliated in front of her by Joe, who threatens to demote him for not separating his business and personal life. It is then revealed that Bernard's "better work", which he hides in a closet, is filled with large piles of dirt and garbage, which he vigorously denies the existence of. Embittered by his boss and colleagues, he spikes Joe's drink with mescaline and turpentine during lunch. He successfully does so, but the plan backfires when the concoction causes Joe to disappear completely.
Fearing the chagrin that will encompass him when his co-workers find out, Bernard then rushes home in his car, only for it to break down during a traffic jam. He bribes a pedestrian for their bicycle, and delivers another monologue to the audience about his upbringing, which he states involved hard labor in the coal mines of Biruvia as far back as he remembers. He became increasingly rebellious in his teenage years, and fled his home after unintentionally killing his father by launching a toaster at him during a botched "aeronautics experiment", knocking his father out of the window. While lecturing the audience on his career as a taxi driver, he absentmindedly collides with a man in a suit along the street, who, through varying tattoos, is revealed to be an agent of both Féregkaki and Mosleg, the horrific dictators of both Vizifold and Anglerland. After running home in a mindless daze, he believes that he is being hunted by both nations, and takes refuge in his dirt-filled cabinet. However, he instead falls down a large hole within it, and lands on a table in a dark room, awakening in an animated sequence.
A scene from the film. depicting an animated Bernard listening to Zigzag
Now in the "Weird World", Bernard meets Zigzag, a small jester, who tells him that he has taken him from his home world because he must save Joe from "the tesseract", a strange cube where is being held hostage by surreal creatures known as the "Hobbitries". Zigzag offers to assist him in his efforts to save Joe, who is revealed to be the only person keeping what is described as the order of the universe aligned. While moving through a fairly destroyed but functional industrial landscape, Bernard additionally meats Aurora, a talking ape, and Ed, a former car mechanic who found himself in the same situation as Bernard. Unable to decipher whether or not he is dreaming, Bernard ingests leftover mescaline and, in a Theodore Bilbo-esque trance where he believes that he is a dictator, proceeds to discuss with his new group his plan to free Joe. The four then venture to the City of AAAAAAAAAHHHH (after the magazine of the same name), where they discover more eccentric abominations and strange characters who agree to join Bernard's "army". Meanwhile, under orders from Féregkaki, Vizifoldian privateers raid a Novanglian ship and begin throwing barrels of tea into the water outside Hawkinsville. A sudden cut is made to Mosleg waking up suddenly from his sleep, and then saying, "something’s wrong, I can feel it." To avoid involvement from the United States in the impending conflict, Féregkaki also orders that President Neil Pebblefellow's drink be spiked as well.
Bernard and his fellow army reach the Palace of the Palaces, which turns out to be a Gothic-esque bar where all the villains of the universe converse openly. A reluctant Ed is sent to help negotiate their entrance into the palace from the guard. Unable to find a reason, Ed instead punches the guard and uses his credentials to open the gate. Unbeknownst to them, the armies of Vizifold have managed to locate Bernard's cabinet, and begin sending an expedition downwards to locate him. Bernard, Ed, and Zigzag discover a large complex rising above the palace resembling an office building, where they discover Joe is being held captive. Bernard then uses his animating skills to construct a vehicle out of a printer and an indoor telephone booth, which they use to barge open the room where Joe lies. They are then intercepted by the Emperor of the Eastern Weird World, a fellow Hobbitrie named Aggadah, who they engage in a medieval-style battle with. All three are overpowered, but Aggadah is interrupted by a phone call from Pebblefellow, who demands more "ice-cream imports" in a drug-ridden haze, leading Bernard to sever the cords holding Joe hostage, and secure their escape. Outside, it is revealed that Vizifoldian armies are engaged in a similar medieval battle with Bernard's men, which has set the outside palace on fire. Zigzag leads Ed, Bernard, and Joe to a fissure in the sky, which leads back up to the cabinet.
Not wanting to leave his "buddies" behind, Bernard instead uses a mortar to open the fissure to a larger degree, opening everyone within the realm to the outside world. He flies upwards towards the fissure, and is knocked out by a falling pipe. He then awakens back in the cabinet, covered in the same piles of dirt and garbage as previous, with everything appearing as he had left it. Assuming it to have been a dream, he returns to work, finding that his colleagues and Joe are now nicer to him, but have no memory of what he describes. Bernard meets Steady again in a nearby bar and tells him about his "dream". Steady tells him to write about it, and Bernard begins sketching and writing about his experiences in a comic paper. He publishes it to critical success. Just as he is about to give a speech on the dream that inspired the experience, he is approached by a still-animated Zigzag in the real-world, who tells him: "We're just as real as you want us to be." Both laugh, and the film ends with a zoom into Bernard's facial expression.
Cast[]
Main[]
- Bobby Bernard as a fictionalized version of himself.
- Susannah York as Kathy, Bernard's love interest.
- Bob Hoskins (voice) as Zigzag and John Steady, Bernard's animated friend and mailman, respectively.
Others[]
- Dirk Bogarde as Joe Chicken, Bernard's boss.
- Stanley Banker (voice) as Ed, a car mechanic who was transported to the Weird World.
- Sean Connery as Féregkaki, the dictator of Vizifold.
- George Sanders as Ozzy Mosleg, the dictator of Anglerland.
- Robert Arden (voice) as Aggadah, the Emperor of the Eastern Weird World.
- Dennis Arundell as Neil Pebblefellow, the gullible President of the United States.
- John Alderton (voice) as Aurora, a talking ape.
- Frank Welker as Donaldson, an agent of Féregkaki.
Production[]
Development and writing[]
The film's initial stage dated back to the early 1960s when Bernard was a financially struggling comedian living in New Chester. He often made earnings through varying comedy routines, most notably at the Backchannel Club, where he had worked for many years prior to becoming famous. The animation sequences were developed in collaboration with a team of animators. Their goal was to create a distinct visual style that mirrored Bernard's imaginative world. The team drew inspiration from various artistic movements, incorporating elements of surrealism, medieval art, and comic book aesthetics to bring the Weird World to life.
The film's production involved extensive set design and practical effects to seamlessly merge live-action scenes with the animated realm. The Palace of the Palaces, the City of AAAAAAAAAHHHH, and the fissure in the sky were meticulously crafted to evoke a sense of otherworldly wonder. The soundtrack, composed by the avant-garde musician, Gyorgy Ligeti, added an extra layer of depth to the film, enhancing its dreamlike atmosphere. Ligeti experimented with unconventional instruments and electronic sounds, creating a sonic landscape that complemented the film's eccentric narrative. The casting process involved selecting actors with a penchant for embracing the surreal.
Themes and analysis[]
Bobby Bernard's character serves as a conduit for themes of disillusionment, both in his personal and professional life. His strained relationship with Kathy, coupled with the disdain he faces at work, reflects a sense of alienation in modern society. The character of John Steady, the pessimistic mailman, further reinforces a negative perspective on the world. This contrasts with Bernard's attempt to find a more optimistic, albeit surreal, outlook. Bernard's creation of the "Weird World" through the animated sequence serves as a form of escapism. The transition from the mundane reality of his life to this fantastical realm represents a desire to escape from the hardships and disappointments he faces. Zigzag, the jester, symbolizes the whimsical and unpredictable nature of creativity. The quest to save Joe from the surreal creatures in the "tesseract" becomes a metaphorical journey for Bernard to confront and overcome his own challenges. Bernard's role as an animator is pivotal to the narrative. His ability to create and animate becomes a metaphor for the power of creativity in overcoming adversity. Through encounters with characters like Aurora and Ed, Bernard discovers the strength of collaboration and shared creativity. The diverse group forms an "army" to challenge the bizarre villains in the Weird World.
The line between reality and dream becomes increasingly blurred as Bernard navigates the Weird World. His use of mescaline contributes to the uncertainty, leaving both the audience and the protagonist questioning the authenticity of the events. The film cleverly plays with the notion of dreams and reality, leaving the audience to interpret whether the entire adventure was a dream or a surreal experience with tangible consequences. The film weaves in elements of political satire, introducing dictators from Vizifold and Anglerland. The raid on Novanglian ships and the attempt to spike the President's drink hint at geopolitical tensions, adding a layer of social commentary. The Palace of the Palaces and the bizarre characters within it reflect a satirical take on power dynamics and villainy in a broader sense. The film concludes with Bernard returning to his mundane life, seemingly unchanged. However, his encounter with Zigzag in the real world blurs the boundaries again, suggesting that the impact of his creative escapade persists. The closing line, "We're just as real as you want us to be," invites contemplation on the subjective nature of reality and the enduring influence of imagination.
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